Speaking from the heart, Deandre Ayton of the Los Angeles Lakers appeared to understand the pressure on his shoulders upon arriving at the team over the summer.
In a recent profile from The Athletic, Dan Woike detailed Ayton’s ups and downs emotionally through the first few weeks of his tenure with the Lakers. After revealing that the star was well aware of the spotlight on both the future of his career and with the team after his offseason signing, the insider shed light on a recent locker room moment that caught many off guard.
Woike recalled a recent instance in which Ayton took control of the Lakers’ locker room speaker to play his own music, then singing lyrics which appeared to signal recognition of the pressure on him to perform in what could be defined as a career-altering season.
The Lakers locker room is like a stage, and Ayton was in the middle of it, completely in the spotlight pregame Saturday night. The music is blaring, but he’s not happy… So, Ayton went rogue and did his own thing,” Woike wrote.
“‘They said this my last chance,’ he yelled over the part in the song when Bobby Hatfield [from the Righteous Brothers] sings ‘I need your love.’ Later, he played ‘Lean on Me’ while telling his teammates that he needed every one of them.”
Ayton was the biggest offseason addition for the Lakers, a much-needed, established center who could help fix the areas of the team that became the ultimate reason for their early playoff exit.
Deandre Ayton Responds To Lakers Rumors
Woike further detailed the locker room moment, which he claimed was the second game in a row the center took control of music duties. The insider reported it was just another reflection of Ayton’s understanding of the pressure on himself and his role within the team.
“Ayton, with Austin Reaves and others watching, started to preach to no one in particular,” Woike wrote. “There was total freedom in his movement, plenty of volume in his voice and no resistance or judgment from anyone sitting in front of his locker. It was a wild energy.”
While Woike’s insights on Ayton’s decisions within the Lakers organization, it wasn’t the only time he openly discussed his feelings on where he is at this point in his career. After a contract buyout with the Portland Trail Blazers, many believe that his joining Los Angeles could be the last stop in his NBA journey.
“They say if this [expletive] don’t work out for me, this is my last year,” Ayton told Woike, referring to the questions surrounding Ayton’s uncertain future if he isn’t successful in Los Angeles. “Everybody and they mama have been saying that.”
Rumors of the Lakers potentially looking for another, perhaps more impactful center, have been running rampant since Ayton’s arrival to the team was announced. Yet still, Woike reported Ayton understands that, but is now feeling the full support of the team.
“But at the end of the weaving in and out of emotions, Ayton seemingly landed on the most important truth, the message the Lakers have been trying to get across to him and the one that’s truly landed,” Woike added. “[They] are showing Ayton a lot of love. And he’s giving a lot back, the Lakers needing every bit of it.”
Lakers Fully Supportive
While it is clear Ayton feels the pressure on himself and his new team, it hasn’t clearly been shown in the box score.
Playing in all 12 of the Lakers’ games, the former first overall pick is averaging 16.2 points and 8.4 rebounds on a league-third 69.2% shooting. The team is 6-0 when Ayton records at least ten points and ten rebounds, and while it’s been mainly Luka Doncic and Reaves, the big man has been a solid third wheel.
Again speaking to Woike, Reaves made it clear that when Ayton is playing well, it elevates the team, despite the seven-footer questioning himself.
“We need the best version of him for us to be as good as we can be,” he said. “If he’s that, then we can be a really good team. If he’s not, I still think with talent, we can win some games. But for us to be what we want to be, we need him to be the best version of himself every game.”
Reaves himself heard the rumors surrounding Ayton when he joined the Lakers. However, the star guard believed everything he heard about his new big man was wrong, even though the impact of those sentiments appeared to cut deep.
“You hear things about people before you’re around ’em, that people try to paint a narrative of character,” Reaves added. “The things that you hear, the things that I heard about him, was that he wasn’t coachable, moody, and it’s been completely opposite.”
Head coach JJ Redick also commented on Ayton and his locker room moment, but explained that he now understands what his center needs and does to become a winning player.
Despite the offseason rumors, Ayton now has the full support of this Lakers team.
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